Celebration Rugelach - Country Living
Submitted by bdweber
Celebration rugelach stacks three tiers of cream cheese pastry filled with walnuts, golden raisins, cinnamon, and raspberry preserves into a stunning Hanukkah or holiday centerpiece.
Celebration rugelach takes the classic Jewish pastry and turns it into a tiered, wedding-cake-style centerpiece worthy of the most ambitious holiday table. Three concentric rounds (9-inch, 6-inch, and 3-inch) get assembled separately from cream cheese rugelach pastry filled with walnuts, golden raisins, cinnamon-sugar, and raspberry preserves, then stacked just before serving. It’s a project, but the visual payoff is genuinely spectacular.
The cream cheese pastry is what makes rugelach taste like rugelach. Equal parts butter and cream cheese with flour creates a tender, slightly tangy dough that’s flaky but holds up to filling without splitting. Chilling overnight is the move that makes the dough manageable; warm rugelach dough is impossible to roll cleanly.
Pro Tips
- Pastry rings (bottomless tart pans) are the recommended specialty tool, but a foil collar works in a pinch. Don’t skip them; they’re what hold the rugelach in tight rounds during the long bake.
- Roll dough thin (⅛ inch) and brush preserves sparingly. Thick preserves leak, burn on the foil, and make the dough wet.
- Start the 9-inch round first since it bakes longest. The 3-inch comes out earliest, so plan your oven shuffle accordingly.
- Make ahead. Bake the tiers up to 2 days in advance and assemble with the apricot glaze the day of serving.
Variations
- Swap raspberry preserves for apricot, fig, or cherry depending on what’s in the pantry.
- Use pecans or hazelnuts instead of walnuts for a different nut profile.
- Add a tablespoon of orange zest to the cinnamon-sugar mix for citrus brightness.
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare Pastry in 2 batches:
In large bowl, combine half the flour and baking powder; mix well. With electric mixer at low speed, beat in half the butter and cream cheese until smooth dough forms.
Divide dough into 4 balls.
Repeat with remaining flour, baking powder, butter, and cream cheese to make 4 more balls of dough.
Wrap balls of dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight.
On lightly floured surface, roll one ball of dough into a 12 by 10 inch rectangle, about ⅛ inch thick.
With fluted pastry wheel or knife, cut rectangle into two 12 by 5-inch strips. (Using pastry wheel, trim 1/16 inch from outside lengthwise edges to flute.)
Transfer strips to baking sheet or large plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate.
Repeat rolling and cutting with remaining balls of dough, stacking strips between plastic wrap and refrigerating as they are made.
Prepare Filling: Set aside ¼ cup each nuts and raisins. In food processor fitted with chopping blade, process remaining 3 cup walnuts until finely chopped.
In medium-size bowl, combine finely chopped nuts, the sugar, and cinnamon. Set mixture aside.
Heat oven to 325℉ (160℃). Line 1 large baking sheet with aluminum foil; place 2 sheets of foil crosswise an a second large baking sheet.
Place one 9-inch pastry ring (see Note) on the first baking sheet; place a 6-inch pastry ring and a 3-inch pastry ring on separate sheets of foil on the other baking sheet.
With the tip of a skewer or toothpick, score outline of all rings into foil; remove rings and set aside until ready to bake rugelach.
To make 9-inch rugelach, brush one strip of dough lightly with raspberry preserves. Sprinkle 3 tablespoon walnut mixture and 1 tablespoon raisins to cover half of strip lengthwise.
Fold uncovered half of dough strip lengthwise over covered half to enclose filling and make a 12 by 2½-inch strip.
Brush top of folded strip lightly with raspberry preserves. From either end, loosely roll up filled strip; stand, cut edges up, in center of 9-inch ring scored on baking sheet.
Fill and fold 8 more strips of dough as in step 5; brush top of each with preserves.
With preserve-brushed surface facing center, wrap one filled dough strip, cut edges up, around rolled strip on baking sheet. Continue wrapping remaining 7 filled strips around center, pinching ends of strips together, until ring is filled.
Sprinkle outside of rugelach with about 2 tablespoon walnut mixture and place 9 inch pastry ring around rugelach spiral.
With remaining pastry strips, prepare 6-inch and 3-inch rugelachs repeating steps 5 and 6, using 5 filled strips of dough for 6-inch rugelach and 2 filled strips for 3-inch rugelach.
Pat some of remaining walnut mixture around outside of rugelachs, using about 1½ tablespoon on each.
Carefully place pastry rings around rugelachs.
Stir reserved nuts and raisins into remaining walnut mixture.
Sprinkle over top of rugelachs, tucking nuts and raisins into the spaces between pastry rings.
Bake 9-inch rugelach 2½ to 1 ¾ hours, 6-inch rugelach 1¼ to 2½ hours, and 3 inch rugelach 1 hour or until center is browned and firm to touch.
With large spatula, remove 3-inch rugelach, still on foil, to wire rack allowing 6-inch rugelach to remain in the oven until it is completely baked.
When baked, carefully transfer all rugelachs to wire rack; remove pastry ring and foil. Let rugelachs cool to room temperature.
Just before serving, in small saucepan, melt apricot preserves and brush over top of each rugelach.
Place 9-inch rugelach on serving plate; top with the 6 inch and 3-inch rugelachs. (If necessary, trim tops of 9 and 6-inch rugelachs to make level so tiers will stand securely.)
Garnish plate with fresh ivy or other green leaves, if desired.
To serve, cut 3-inch rugelach into 6 wedges and remove to individual plates.
Then cut 6-inch rugelach into 10 wedges and remove to plates; cut 9-inch rugelach into 14 wedges and remove.
Note: Pastry rings, which look like bottomless tart pans, can be found at gourmet cookware stores.
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